INSIDE: waterpark attendance figures

INSIDE:
waterpark
MAGAZINE attendance
figures
fall 2011 • volume 7, issue 4
FEATURE STORY - turning the spigot back on in the
water park hotel business: financial analyst Dan
Martin’s comprehensive report
The
Force
BehindtheAttractions
Products, Ideas, and Connections
to Drive Your Business Forward
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Produced by:
I
absolutely LOVE New
Orleans. There’s so much
to love: the people, the food,
the music, the culture, the
nightlife, the architecture,
the history…I could go on
and on. But what notably
isn’t in that list of things to
love about New Orleans is
“waterparks.” They just don’t
seem to register on the
radar in the Big Easy. That
leads me to one of the things
I love about WWA (World Waterpark Association).
They are willing to support a city, a community and a
people that have done so much to contribute to the
tourism industry that we all rely on for our livelihood
– even though it’s not a waterpark town.
fall 2011 • volume 7, issue 4
4
waterpark news
6
tightening grip
8
do as i say and as i do
10
of slides and sleeping
15
fun outside the parks
17
waterpark attendance figures
WWA also knows how to produce a good trade show.
From a vendor’s perspective, the tightened show
hours, care in not having too many competing events,
and the attraction of having lunch and beverages
available on the show floor makes for a successful
event.
advertisers
entertainment design group
iaapa
texas digital
whitewater west
staff & contributors
EDITOR
martin palicki
CO-EDITOR
judith rubin
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
mitch rily
kim rily
DESIGN
mcp, llc
CONTRIBUTORS
pat friedlander
dan martin
kim rily
SALES
martin palicki
SPECIAL THANKS
tea
aecom
20
2
7
9,11,13
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Contents © 2011 InPark Magazine. All rights
reserved. Nothing in the magazine may be
reproduced or used in any manner without the
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Magazine is not responsible for unsolicited
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-Martin Palicki
[email protected]
waterpark news
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - Aqua Splash Waterpark, part
of Marineland Espace, located on the French
Riviera near Antibes, Juan Les Pins, France added
a signature waterslide and a new kids water play
ground. The expansion was completed in April
2011 and the park opened on June 11th.
Polin supplied a signature ride, Hybrid Dragero
waterslide, and kids’ water play area which is rich in
kid-focused water play features.The new kids water
play area hosts an Octopus Slide, Mini Pirate Slide,
Cobra Slide, Penguin Shower, Giraffe Shower, Mini
Octopus Slide and an Obstacle Track, which is a
new game by Polin to increase activity in the pool
area.
The new head-first mat racer ride with a dynamic
multi-color combination, Hybrid Dragero is
150 meter long and is especially designed for
Aquasplash. It is a sophisticated, thrilling, highcapacity waterslide starting with three high speed
multiracer lanes that feature a big drop, an uphill
ride route and transforming into enclosed aqua
tube slides and ending in an aqua catch.
The park managers add that due to the new
additions, the guest numbers increased 15-18%
compared to the same period of time last year in
spite of rainy weather conditions.
RICHMOND, BC - WhiteWater is pleased to highlight
its third Family Python™ installation this season.
Boulder Beach Waterpark, within Idaho’s Silverwood
Theme Park, has undergone its third expansion,
featuring the new Family Python™.
“Ricochet Rapids” is a fully-enclosed 737 foot (225
meter) long Family Python™ which also offers a
colossal 20 foot (6.1 meter) MEGAtube™ section,
swallowing riders whole into its depths! This
attraction ‘ricochets’ 5 or 6 person family rafts back
and forth with adrenaline-pumping turns and
oscillations, down a 40 foot (12.2 meter) hill.
WhiteWater is pleased to have designed,
engineered, manufactured and installed this Family
Python™ attraction and a number of other signature
attractions during its long-standing relationship
with Boulder Beach and Silverwood Theme
Park. This family raft ride joins other WhiteWater
attractions including an AquaPlay RainFortress™,
Family Raft Ride, high thrill slides and more.
CESME, TURKEY - Ilica Spa and wellness Resort in Cesme,Turkey has just opened Aquatoy
City, a new waterpark addition to the facility. Situated on the crystal blue Agean Sea,
not far from the main city of Izmir, the area is a popular resort town and favored for
weekend escapes from the busy city.
The project includes a central restaurant and spa facility, new waterslide complex,
leisure pool, lazy river and childrens water playground - allowing the hotel to offer a
wider array of attractions.
The kid’s area hosts a new array of fun water play features from Empex Watertoys®
which have been combined into a dynamic water playground called AQUACIRCUS®.
Empex has created a new line of interactive watertoys under the trademark Aquanetics™,
where kids can turn a hand wheel and produce different sprays, water flows, and kinetic
effects such as turning pelton wheels, spinners, gears and pinwheels to create an effect
of water motion. Aquawizz™, Aquanoodle™, Aquaswirl™ and Aquamill™ are four new
structures in the Aquanetic line.
Incorporating several Aquanetic structures in a new expanded curvilinear Aquadek,
Empex created their latest concept, the Aquacircus®. This is a climb and slide structure
which provides a myriad of different slide experiences and 45 creative interactive
activities. Complete with Aquaclunes™ (spray clowns), Aquajetz™, interactive Watertoys®
and Aquatons® spray features around the structure, the resulting visual is as much fun
for the spectators as it is for the participants.
RICHMOND, BC - WhiteWater, a global leader in waterpark design, engineering,
manufacturing and installation, announced two new projects in Egypt’s most popular
tourist destinations. These new waterparks - on opposite sides of the world-renowned
Red Sea - were designed by WhiteWater, and will feature a range of thrilling attractions
for guests of all ages.
Coral Sea Splash Resort in Sharm El Sheikh will be home to the newest and most
prestigious waterpark resort in the fashionable Nabq area on the Red Sea. Open this
past weekend, the waterpark entertains guests with a Boomerango™ and SuperBowl
waterslide complex, 3-lane Whizzard™ mat racer, AquaPlay™ AP1050 multi-level
interactive structure, a Family Wave pool, toddler spray area, and most exciting for
WhiteWater - WhiteWater’s first FlowRider® stationary sheet surf ride installation! The
FlowRider® area will also feature a host of food and beverage concessions to keep
spectators highly entertained.
“WhiteWater is helping us build the best amusement facilities in the area with their
inspiring design services and great attractions,” says Ahmed Al Wassief, Managing
Director of Wings Group for Tourism Investment, owner of the Coral Sea management
company. “Their experience and creativity is truly unmatched in the industry.”
Anticipated to open this summer 80 kilometers across the Red Sea in Hurghada, will
be Makadi Palace, also designed, manufactured and installed by WhiteWater. Featuring
a FlowRider®, a Family Wave pool and 4 Inner-Tube waterslides, Makadi Palace will also
be home to Egypt’s first custom pirate-themed AquaPlay RainFortress™ surrounded
by AquaSpray™ activity elements and an AquaTune water-based interactive musical
instrument. The Middle East’s first AquaLoop™, the only fully inverted looping waterslide,
will also be unveiled at Makadi Palace.
WEST PALM BEACH, FL - Rapids Water Park in West Palm Beach, FL
is now home to the World’s first ProSlide KrakenRACER™, which
has been met with great accolade from both the park and their
guests. The ProSlide KrakenRACER™ is the latest evolution of the
Award Winning ProSlide ProRACER™, which since its debut has
taken home IAAPA Best New Water Ride and now, has hundreds
of racing lanes installed world-wide.
The patented ProSlide KrakenRACER™, with its fast dispatch and
high capacity, starts ‘racers’ head first through enclosed, braided,
twisting tunnels where they experience accelerating drops and
twists before they speed towards the open racing lanes for one
last stomach-dropping plunge and the chance of first place.
“The ProSlide KrakenRACER™ is a great example of ProSlide’s
relentless dedication to product development and innovation!
It shows our commitment to our customers to continuously
produce inventive designs and revolutionize what the definition
of a ‘racer’ style Water Ride is,” says Rick Hunter, President & CEO of
ProSlide Technology.
Rapids Water Park chose the KrakenRACER™ in a 6 lane configuration
but it is also available in other multi-lane footprints - 2, 4, 8 and 10
lane configurations. The ProSlide KrakenRACER™ joins Rapids Water
Park alongside a wide array of other must-have ProSlide Water Rides
including: TORNADO™60, DarkTORNADO™45, CannonBOWL™,
ProBOWL™, MAMMOTHBubba™, DarkMAMMOTH™, PIPELINEs™,
TWISTERs™ and a KIDZ™ zone!
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - POLIN Waterparks and Pool Systems
announced the debut of its new King Cobra ride at Cobra
Kingdom Waterpark at Maxx Royal, Antalya, Turkey. Cobra
Kingdom Waterpark opened on June 2011.
King Cobra offers not only an intense and heart pounding
experience to its riders, but also a stunning design and a one of
a kind of visual to its spectators. The core feature of King Cobra is
its unique configuration that enables two double tubes to race
through a circular path with twists, turns, and surprises before
experiencing the drop of their lives as they continue to race in the
valley of the Cobra. This epic plunge is 8 meters down and allows
the rider to accelerate to a speed of 51 km/h.Ugur Degirmenci,
Project Engineer, Polin adds: “It does not end. The two double
tubes are now heading into the mouth of Cobra. Unique fog,
high-pitched hiss, water spraying, visual effects make it more
exciting than ever while the spectators below think you are just
“swallowed” in the mouth of the Cobra. Then powerful G-forces
take over your tube and riders come back down and then oscillate
up and down again as the tubes stop on down the waterslide.
You come to the end of this unique riding experience. The new
waterslide is both visually and in terms of riding experience just
breathtaking.”
CHICAGO, IL - CENTAMAN Entrance Control, provider of intelligent
entrance control solutions, today announced it has launched a new
web site which provides customers, prospects, and security industry
practitioners a new way to interact with the company. The modern
design, simple navigation, and rich multi-media product resources assist
those seeking lobby security or outdoor security solutions.
Visitors to www.entrancecontrol.com.au will find a dramatically different
web presence. The new site provides extensive photo galleries to
help architects and end users better envision turnstiles solutions for
their building lobbies. Many fast-streaming videos are also available to
demonstrate product options to assist prospective customers. Product
brochures are available for downloads and there is also an applications
section which highlights the product offerings that suit certain
applications the best.
“Nowadays, when people are looking to source new products the
internet plays a vital role. People typically start their search online and
as such an easy to use and information rich web solution is vital to allow
people to gain a clear understanding of what solutions CENTAMAN
Entrance Control can provide for them” says Michael Bystram manager of
CENTAMAN’s Entrance Control Division “Our new web page covers off our
complete range including external perimeter full height turnstiles, high
end speedgates for office reception buildings and ½ height turnstiles for
leisure and fitness applications. Click on www.entrancecontrol.com.au to
find out more.”
BEIJING, CHINA - The Beijing Happy Magic Waterpark located in the
Fengtai District of Beijing, China has recently opened with some of the
most unique and innovative water ride complexes in the world which
entertains a huge amount of guests daily, up to 35,000! This Waterpark
has the largest amount of water rides built in 2011 and has been touted
as the World’s Largest Waterpark, with all major rides and complexes by
ProSlide Technology.
ProSlide provided Beijing Happy Magic Waterpark with 7 major ride
complexes, thirty-five water rides and the world’s largest RideHOUSE
active Ride n’ Spray structure - boasting 12 slides, over 65 active water play
features, a 400-gallon dumping bucket and over 150 themed sculptures
and features.
Beijing Happy Magic Waterpark has the World’s First TornadoWAVE , the
next evolution of ProSlide’s thrilling line-up of extreme water rides. With a
45 degree drop in and near vertical hang time the TornadoWAVE creates
a unique sweeping weightlessness sensation. This complex is even more
impressive with the addition of the IAAPA Best New Waterpark Ride and
Industry Impact Award winning BehemothBOWL!
In total ProSlide built a triple funnel TantrumALLEY, the iconic TORNADO,
a MACH 4 complex, BehemothBOWL, Duelling CannonBOWLs,
OctopusRACER, TornadoWAVE, a SpeedZone complex with FreeFALL, Turbo
TUNNEL and a MultiBUMP, as well as a KIDZ Zone and a RideHOUSE!
tightening grip
wet n wild phoenix adds constrictor to their growing park
by Martin Palicki
A
lthough InPark reported on the opening of Wet
n Wild Phoenix in 2009, I had never visited the
park that had torn down and rebuilt Waterworld.
Located about 20 minutes north of downtown
Phoenix, the park appears as an oasis, rising up out
of the ground, peeking out from behind nearby
foothills.
I met with Trevor Wilson, an industry veteran
who worked his way through Paramount’s Great
America, Knott’s Berry Farm and others. The park
was extremely crowded. As Trevor took me on a
tour thousands of teenagers and families scurried
around from attraction to attraction, nearly all of
which are stars in their own right.
Aside from the wave pool and lazy river that were
rehabbed from Waterworld, every attraction is new.
The majority of slides are from Whitewater West –
including the dueling Master Blaster water coasters.
A ProSlide Tornado also rounds out the collection.
What I’m really here for, of course, is the brand new
Constrictor slide, a Whitewater West prototype tube
slide for one or two riders.
The enclosed slide features a brightly colored
variegated pattern, seemingly inspired by its
namesake serpent and similarly coiled. The slide’s
unique feature is the series of tight-radius turns
that repeat one after the other, separated only by
Constrictor is a prototype slide from Whitewater West that features tight turns in a quick ride that thrills guests. Photo by Martin Palicki.
short straight sections. From the outside they
appear like small bowls on the slide, slightly
larger than the connecting pieces, but the
experience they provide is different from a
traditional bowl. Upon entering the tight turns,
the raft speeds up and is pushed up higher on
the wall. The sensation is unexpected and, as
one slider put it, “tickles the tummy.”
Although the slide is short, it packs a punch and
keeps people cycling through the attraction.
“We were looking for a new experience that
had quick throughput and complemented
our current collection of attractions,” explained
Wilson. “We were presented with several ideas
and felt the Constrictor was new and fresh.”
The slide has proven popular with park guests.
The queue was completely full during my visit,
yet the wait was only about 25 minutes, and
lifeguards were vigilant about splashing water
on patrons waiting in line to keep them (and
the concrete) cool in the 100+ degree heat.
Constrictor was added on to a pre-existing
mat-racer slide tower, and expands the park
further East, where Wet n Wild Phoenix hopes
to continue growing and bringing new thrilling
attractions to their guests.
Constrictor is a major addition to Wet n Wild Phoenix’s growing park footprint.
Photo by Martin Palicki.
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do as i say and as i do
bill nye’s climate laboratory: the exhibition that practices what it teaches
by Pat Friedlander
P
robably some of the most effective change
agents for behavior modification are kids.
Kids are relentless in pushing adults into
consciousness of good habits, and building
awareness of the small changes that can have
a positive impact on climate change is a fertile
breeding ground for new good habits.
That was part of Bill Nye’s thinking when he
conceived his “Climate Laboratory” at the
Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland CA.
Emmy-award-winning Billy Nye the Climate
Guy is the commander of the Clean Energy
Space Station. Visitors journey from space
to Earth to join Bill as Climate Scouts on an
urgent mission to thwart climate change.
The goal of the exhibition, geared toward
elementary school children and their families
as well as teachers, is to increase climate
change science literacy. In promoting small
changes that will add up to a collective impact
on the way we live in the world, the 4100 sq.
ft. exhibit teaches visitors about clean energy
sources, encourages thinking about how we
design the built landscape we live in, and
focuses on solutions and innovations that
will change the status quo. The exhibition is
organized around five content areas: air, water,
land transportation and green design and
building, with approximately 30 interactive
and multimedia stations.
The Exhibition that Walks the
Walk
An interesting feature about this exhibit, which
also incorporates RFID and an interactive
website that allows visitors to extend their
experience beyond the time spent the
actual museum, is that the fabricators of the
museum, General Graphics Exhibits (GGE) in
San Francisco, had to make their own choices
of materials that were consistent with the goal
of the museum, illustrating that in our homes,
our workplaces, schools—and museums!—we
can all make similar choices.
Because manufacturing new materials
uses a lot of energy and raw materials, the
byproducts of the process can be harmful to
the environment. Roughly 98% of the Climate
Laboratory can be recycled, so that at the end
of its life, the aluminum, steel, wood, and carpet
can be part of something new. The carpet tiles,
for example, use 40% recycled content culled
This portion of the exhibit explains the production of biofuels, explaining the whole process--from harvesting biofuel material to turning it
into fuels. Photo courtesy of Chabot Space & Science Center.
The largest and
This is a life-sized replica of the Alvin submersible used in deep sea
exploration. This exhibit discusses the impact of global warming and climate
change on the oceans. An interactive graph shows ocean currents and the jet
stream. As the oceans warm, the currents slow down, eventually, to a dead stop,
and life ends on the planet. Photo courtesy of Chabot Space & Science Center.
from other installations at Chabot. By reusing
existing materials, there is both energy savings
and a reduction in waste and pollution.
Actually, some of the aluminum, steel and
wood in the exhibit came from GGE’s scrap
bins and other local scrap suppliers.
Another climate friendly initiative that marked
the fabrication and installation of the museum
was buying locally, since moving materials
over long distances by truck, plane or ship
results in CO2 emissions and other pollution.
The majority of the materials used were
manufactured in the U.S., and the structural
woods (plywood and fir) came from West
Coast sources. Other materials in this exhibit
were manufactured from industrial waste or
scrap, cutting the demand for raw materials
and solving garbage problems. For example,
the exhibit uses wheatboard manufactured
from wheat straw, a rapidly renewable resource
that is considered a waste product.
Finishes, paints, and sealants can be highly
toxic, so GGE chose options that have the
least possible amount of volatile organic
compounds (VOCs), avoiding those that are
bad for human health as well as the overall
environment. For example, Marmoleum which
is made from 100% natural ingredients (linseed
only all-in-one
waterpark experience!
oil, cork, limestone, tree resin and minerals)
was used for flooring and surface finishing
The wood used in the exhibit is Forest
Stewardship Council (FSC) certified, which
means that the wood comes from sustainably
managed forests. There are a number of
organizations that provide ‘green’ certification
to help identify sustainable materials. The FSC
tracks the provenance of the wood all the way
from the forest to the supplier.
aiian
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Falls, R
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And finally, because the exhibit itself uses
energy, the computers, monitors and lighting
are all Energy Star-rated and energy efficient.
Much of the exhibit is lit with Light Emitting
Diode (LED) lighting; LED lights are extremely
efficient; they draw very little power and give
off very little heat.
In addition to GGE’s fabrication and installation
work, the exhibition was designed by
Amaze Design, an interpretive planning and
museum exhibition design firm. Proximity Lab
designed the user interaction and application
development for the exhibition web site,
which prolongs the entire experience and
education process. LongWave Consulting
Partners contributed expertise in developing
multimedia experiences and RFID technology.
The Waterpark Company
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of slides and sleeping
tough times, bright future in the water park hotel/resort industry
by Dan Martin
2
011 may be the lightest year for waterpark
hotels in more than a dozen years. Only
two indoor waterpark hotels were opened
– one large and one small - while six southern
properties added outdoor waterpark features
to their properties. The high water mark was
2007 when over 30 waterpark hotels opened.
Before the Recession
Just a couple of years ago, the waterpark
hotel market was rapidly expanding across
the US. Well over a hundred independent
properties were built while six players with
bigger ambitions -- Great Wolf Lodge,
Kalahari Resorts, Wilderness, Sage Hospitality,
Schlitterbahn, and Focus Hospitality -- had
begun moving on bold expansion plans.
Before the recession, Great Wolf Lodges had
five new properties in the pipeline to add to
its 12 existing properties. Kalahari Resorts was
adding its third mega-resort near Washington,
DC to its inventory of existing properties
in Sandusky, OH and the Wisconsin Dells.
Wilderness had been successful in Pigeon
Forge, TN and was adding even more rooms
across the Wisconsin Dells property that just
kept growing, while planning a Pigeon Forge
expansion.
Sage had a dozen Coco Key indoor waterparks
that it had added to its stock of generally
underperforming metro area hotels from
Omaha to Boston with plans for a total of 17
to 20 properties altogether. Focus had two
successful properties in Shipshewana, IN and
Dundee, MI with plans for more.
Schlitterbahn, the Texas waterpark giant – with
three strong outdoor parks– had plans for
waterpark hotels in Kansas City, KS and Austin,
TX. Their New Braunfels, TX flagship outdoor
property was just named best waterpark in the
world for the 14th year in a row and already
was a waterpark hotel, and they owned many
small lodging properties in the vicinity.
Dozens of single location independent
players planned on cloning their location into
a brand.
As the Recession Crept in
By the time the recession arrived, the market
leaders had honed their concepts to maturity.
Kalahari Resorts had giant properties and
indoor waterparks to match. They prospered
in the meetings market with substantial
convention centers and properties themed
with broad age appeal. Large waterparks
allowed them to pack in an array of rides
and target an all-ages market. The number
of visitors at any time was large enough to
support an array of restaurants.
Great Wolf added the addictive Magicquest
game on site while taking service, theming
and programming to Disney heights. Their
target was clearly younger than Kalahari
Resort. At between 300 to 400 rooms they
were less than half the size of the Kalahari
Resorts. Going public and taking on partners
gave them the capital to spread a new design
quickly to the East, and to Texas and Seattle.
The Wilderness’ home property sprawled in
every direction but a new one in the Smokies
was a tight package. They offered a lot of
indoor waterpark space, stayed with the idea
of having an outdoor waterpark too and
offered a diverse set of accommodations from
basic rooms to deluxe cabins and condos. In
the Dells they teamed with others to build the
nationally recognized Sundara spa.
While both Sage and Focus were experienced
hospitality companies with many nonwaterpark properties to their credit, they took
different paths. Focus did new-construction
properties with their Splash Universe brand
in small family destination markets without
competition, while Sage, with capital
from partners, moved quickly and bolted
The waterpark at the Blue Harbor Resort in Sheboygan, Wisconsin shortly after its opening. File photo from InPark Magazine.
10
waterpark boxes on to a varied package
of underperforming suburban metro area
hotels. Their target was raising revenue on
weekends.
The Recession Hit Hard
The twin terrors of dropping ADRs (average
daily rate) and occupancy hit the hotel
industry broadly as occupancy dropped 20%.
Waterpark hotels felt the pinch in different
ways. Some destinations did okay; they
were close enough to metro areas that they
became the substitute for a trip to Florida.
But price competition drove rates down for
most. Independent waterpark properties
across the country suffered most. The ones in
metro areas didn’t offer enough of a getaway
feel. The impact was considerable. The most
heavily themed properties, including Great
Wolf, delivered on that feel and suffered less.
Great Wolf occupancy reportedly dropped by
only 5%.
Large, well designed and equipped indoor
waterparks held onto rates and occupancy
better than thinly themed and equipped
properties. The smaller, less amenitized, first
generation Great Wolf Lodges suffered along
with many independents. Facilities with
broader age appeal could target a broader
range of families. Facilities that could afford
them added dry play areas such as indoor
amusement areas (on the scale of old pier
beach casinos on the coast) as they were
less expensive than new water features,
generated income, and weren’t just more
water. This was a very popular move in the
Wisconsin Dells but easier to do in locations
like the Dells or Gatlinburg which draw
millions of visitors in addition to a property’s
guests.
Some failing properties tossed the keys to
lenders as revenue dropped and their actual
property value dropped below loan values
– mirroring the housing market and echoing
the fate of early generations of waterpark
hotels in the Dells whose value was plowed
under when the first Great Wolf Lodge,
Kalahari Resort, Wilderness and others were
built.
Across the hotel industry properties became
cheaper to buy than build, but it seemed
worse for some waterpark hotels where
the indoor waterpark was seen by some as
an operating albatross. As property values
plunged, the loan to value ratios shifted. If
value dropped below the loan, you could
only hang on if you had the deep pockets or
the cash flow. If not, the property was sold to
someone else for substantially lower current
market value, or simply closed. Dozens of
individual properties across the US went
through this. The result is that the fleet of
waterpark hotels across the US is now a bit
smaller – but more importantly, the total
value of the industry’s assets got a buzz cut.
Sage Hospitality Leaves the
Category
Of the market leaders, Sage was hit the
hardest, but in its downfall taught the
industry a lot. Before the recession it had
been criticized for an operations approach
that ran the hotels and waterparks separately.
Add the dual identity -- business and leisure
hotels all-in-one plus the cost of branding
with a flag, and the result was unusually
high cost. The need to be a business hotel
through the week meant the hotel itself
wasn’t themed -- there wasn’t a true overall
experience and welcome feel for families.
The indoor waterparks themselves were
not very highly regarded as experiences. As
was the case with many independents, they
seemed to be value engineered too much.
Also challenging: each property had already
been an underperforming business hotel
and many weekday business travelers could
sense that occupancies were low.
Sage Hospitality, which still successfully
operates about 60 hotels without waterparks
in 26 states, got out of the waterpark hotel
business.
Eleven properties were sold.
One, a Chicago area Sheraton, sold for an
astonishing $7.7 million – under $18,000 per
room. By contrast, two other sales by Sage
over the last year of hotels without waterparks
demonstrate how outrageously low this
figure was. The two Denver area properties
Sage sold were a Marriott Courtyard for
approximately $260,000 per room and a JW
Marriott for $370,000 a room – many times
more per room than they received for their
waterpark properties.
Sage’s other ten waterpark properties,
scattered across seven states, were also
sold at shocking discounts. The adjacent
Fairfield Inn North Cincinnati and Crowne
Plaza North properties, which share a Coco
Key waterpark, received winning bids of $1.8
million and $2.2 million, respectively. Even
now, a single family house in many parts of
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California sells for more. A third Ohio property,
a 200-room conference and waterpark hotel
went for $4.97 million or $24,500 a room. A fall
2010 recession-era appraisal had valued the
property months earlier at $36 million.
It’s hard to miss the conclusion that the
addition of the indoor waterparks to these
properties may have lowered their value. Still,
the most successful asset in the sale - the Coco
Key brand - survived, still used by the buyers of
the properties that are still open.
Other Market Leaders Survive
Focus took some hits but has, thus far, made
it through with its two properties. This is true
of Wilderness as well. Their astonishing sprawl
of properties in the Dells continued to grow
through the recession and the Wilderness
in Pigeon Forge, TN is generally regarded as
a success, breaking the barrier for what had
been presumably lower-yield Southern family
destination markets like Pigeon Forge, Myrtle
Beach, Branson, the Florida Panhandle and
others.
Kalahari Resorts, on the verge of a well-conceived
development deal in Fredericksburg, VA, was
caught in the revolving door of the recession.
This was a breakthrough deal for them in many
ways as it was more sophisticated in several
key areas. It was a public-private venture with
a lot of community support. The approach to
financing was new for them too. Instead of the
farmer’s approach of selling a crop (in this case
– a crop of condos) to finance the next round
of work, this deal had a more sophisticated
financing package with a major lender. The
design was also a notch above what they had
done previously.
Kalahari Resorts wants to try this model again
and most likely will when capital flows. The
recession has given them time to work out
operational wrinkles and become more like
the Gaylord hotel chain (enormous meetingdriven properties in Grapevine, TX, Washington,
DC, Orlando, FL and the original in Nashville.)
Gaylord has become more like Kalahari Resorts
with its new outdoor waterpark features at
the Texan in Grapevine (a stone’s throw from a
successful Great Wolf ).
If Kalahari Resorts is successful with a third
property, they will have the scale to support
a full development team that can move on
to develop additional properties or convert
flagging resorts into Kalahari Resorts. They
are less likely to switch to the business model
that Great Wolf has chosen as the much larger
Kalahari Resort model will not be as easy to
franchise.
Schlitterbahn is still planning an entrance into
the fray. They’ve been building an outdoor
park in Kansas City in stages over several years.
Designed to include a very large hotel and
an indoor/outdoor waterpark, the waterpark
has done better every year. Back in Texas,
Schlitterbahn is still looking for the right deal
in Austin is likely to do an outdoor waterpark
project with lodging on North Padre Island
near Corpus Christi, and just purchased athe
hotel adjacent to the South Padre Island
property with plans to renovate and add to the
existing waterpark. The group is renowned for
its creativity and just debuted a set of one-ofa-kind treehouse cabins at the flagship in New
Braunfels, TX that they hope to roll into all of
their locations as premium lodging.
Great Wolf Lodge emerged with its portfolio
intact at 11 units but without its development
division. The company sold a waterpark hotel
property it had developed as a second brand
for a fraction of its development cost – The
Blue Harbor on Lake Michigan in the unlikely
destination of Sheboygan, WI. It reportedly sold
for $4.2 million. Great Wolf also reportedly has
a negative loan to value ratio on at least two
of Its older properties. This year the company
reportedly will emerge with their highest
EBITDA ever.
What saved Great Wolf Lodge was smart
strategy. Doubling down on the branding
reaped benefits, but what mattered the most
was that they had rolled out a smarter new
prototype just before the recession. First used in
The entrance to the Great Wolf Lodge near King’s Island in Ohio. On page 14, the waterpark for this Great Wolf Lodge features a hydromagnetics coaster slide from ProSlide. File photos from InPark Magazine.
12
Tannersville, PA, then Concord, NC, Grapevine,
TX, and Grand Mound, WA, the prototype
featured better and larger waterparks, more
rooms, and more ways to play at the property.
Great Wolf began a successful foray into the
meetings and events business, forged an
alliance with a national cheerleaders group
to do events at their properties, and slimmed
down headquarters staff while keeping
nearly all disciplines in house except the one
that got them to the top: they jettisoned their
development capabilities and converted to a
franchise and operating business model.
all new large hotel construction starts are
overseas. But to overcome the development
cost hurtle, Great Wolf may be open to the
prospect of rebranding an existing hotel.
They’re smart enough not to fail with this
approach as Sage did and would bring their
brand. Ironically, raising capital is no longer
their problem under the new business model,
but partnering with developers can be key.
Great Wolf Lodge remains the biggest name
in the business and hopes to add several
properties a year moving forward.
Overall, Great Wolf struck a new corporate
balance. The challenge with centrally run
hospitality and entertainment companies with
dispersed assets is to centralize rationally so
that the cost of headquarters and operations
are less than any franchise fee. They appear to
have met that challenge.
Financing new hotels is easier than for
most other types of commercial real estate
properties. However, financing most other
property types is nearly impossible. Financial
sources would prefer more typical franchised
facilities like Hampton Inn over waterpark
hotels. There are 1,800 Hamptons and
their performance is pretty well known in
advance.
Today, Great Wolf Lodge still has expansion
plans but, as others must do, their success
rests on how well they can find and persuade
developers to build properties for them. As
the most sophisticated brand in the pack and
a successful hotel and waterpark operator,
they have a product to sell and have already
set their sights on working with developers in
several states, including projects in California
and reportedly a site near Pittsburgh. Their
existing portfolio originally focused on family
destinationsnow it succeeds wherever they
can effectively serve a top-20 metro area.
Once dependent on family destinations
to draw customers, Great Wolf is now the
magnet.
Great Wolf Lodge’s franchise/operator
approach means that they’ve turned the
steering wheel over to prospective developers.
While the prospective developer will rely on
Great Wolf Lodge for market advice – driving
directions – the developers will go where
they’re comfortable developing. When they
build, the sources of financing will want
large exclusionary zones around their new
investment. This may direct where Great Wolf
Lodges will be built in the future.
Because a Great Wolf Lodge hotel and indoor
waterpark today can cost $150 to $200 million,
the company will have to persuade developers
that they are smarter than the more fungible
Sheraton or Hilton. Here, Great Wolf Lodges
has an argument: The US is full of large major
brands competing with one another. Almost
Looking For Money
Since the waterpark hotel has a foot in the
hospitality and entertainment world it is a
step behind all other hotels. Financing a
great pool and slide package addition to
an existing branded hotel in a southern tier
state from California to the Carolinas will be
easier than financing a new waterpark hotel
from the ground up. Notwithstanding the
Sage story, which many lenders may never
be aware of, adding this package would be
seen as adding revenue-enhancing amenities
to a hotel that already has a cash flow – not
building a waterpark hotel.
The larger market leaders have a different
problem -- the price tag for developing new
properties has gotten quite high. A new Great
Wolf could cost $200 million and a Kalahari
even more.
Public partnership in hotel financing is one
possibility. Communities will issue public
bonds to facilitate new projects that serve
local economic development goals. This
arrangement has been going on for decades.
Large new Hiltons, Marriotts, Westins and
others have been built to support publiclyowned convention centers across the US. The
demand for these large properties Is typically
not strong enough throughout the year, but
a lot of short-term capacity is needed when
the radiologists or, in our world, IAAPA, WWA,
or AZA come to town. Unfortunately, some
of these properties have been financed this
13
The next few years will see more Great Wolf
Lodges, Schlitterbahn’s entry and probably
another property from each of Kalahari Resorts,
Wilderness, and Focus. Ski resorts near metro
areas or in summer tourism areas have begun
to reconsider the idea too.
way because it “was possible” not because they
were truly needed.
Some well known waterpark hotel and
waterpark properties already have been
financed or had their development supported
this way. Schlitterbahn in Kansas City was
enticed, in part, by favorable STAR bonds
issued in Kansas. Kalahari’s Fredericksburg
(Washington, DC area) development would
also have been built with tremendous local
support. The development that included a
Great Wolf Lodge across the interstate had
similar support. The Denver based developer
of the new Great Wolf in Garden Grove, CA is
relying on a substantial bond sale by the local
government there to help build the large
property on a small site near Disneyland. The
small site requires a parking structure that
would not be economical without public
support.
This approach to financing may distort the
marketplace where new waterpark hotels are
built. Large new waterpark hotels will need
to guard against going to communities or
sites that might not be the best locations for
business but are selected because they can
get the public financing there. Communities
eager to do the deal or are fiscally capable of
it are not necessarily the best places to build a
new attraction.
Great Wolf Lodge’s unsuccessful Blue
Harbor project development in Sheboygan
(mentioned previously) may be an example of
this. The waterpark hotel was to be a key part of
the redevelopment of an industrial area on the
shore of Lake Michigan and along a cleanedup river. Although the effort was spearheaded
by a local economic development group
that worked the deal several ways to make it
very favorable for Great Wolf Lodge, it wasn’t
enough. No one in the market took Sheboygan
seriously as a destination when source markets
like Milwaukee, Madison, and Chicago could
choose the Wisconsin Dells as easily.
In these ways the larger waterpark hotels
have become increasingly like other large
mainstream properties – it also opens more
metro areas with the possibility of public
financing to the large waterpark hotel players.
Kalahari’s bid to go to metro Washington DC
would have taken it to a very different location
than its earlier family resort destinations
in rural areas like the Wisconsin Dells and
Sandusky, OH. If the meeting facility that
would have been a part of Kalahari’s property
would have been owned by the public sector,
the deal would have been a new version of the
large convention center hotel deals done in
dozens of places across the US – but this time
with a property that can fill rooms when the
convention center is dark.
Using condo sales to finance development
has been how most waterpark hotels have
expanded over time, but the pool of potential
buyers – and their ability to get financing
themselves – has shrunk. Additionally, this
approach is limited to family destination areas.
Looking Ahead
The waterpark hotel/resort industry is now
thriftier and wiser. It has lost a number of
smaller players and one large player, although
most of its properties remain. Key players
continue to sift through the evidence to see
what happened and what can be learned.
14
The largest new market is the southern half of
the US from the Carolinas to California. Texas
will be a market to watch. Wilderness has
done well enough in Pigeon Forge, TN to get
attention for its southern strategy. Existing,
but generally smaller southern properties
are already adding small outdoor parks. They
should read the Sage case study first, but there
is a development cost difference. Most of this
action will be existing properties adding lessexpensive “starter” outdoor-only waterparks.
But even considering the Sage story, they
would be wise to hold aside a spot for an 80,000
square-foot air-conditioned indoor waterpark
for when they can afford it and need to make
a move on their competition. An indoor
waterpark could work well in Arizona where
summer temps can stay over 100 degrees for
months. Dallas had record temps last summer
but Houston and Atlanta summers are also
characterized by uncomfortable hot humid
summers. The five million people of DFW, six
million in Houston, and the five-and-a-half
million in Atlanta might be very interested in
this type of property. In general, the sweet
spot appears to be lower to middle market.
At the top of the market waterpark hotel is
not a new idea. The enormous Gaylord Texan
near Dallas just added one. Also in Texas, two
upscale Hyatt resorts and a JW Marriott in
the hills around San Antonio have extensive
outdoor waterpark features but have been less
successful than expected. But in the capital
of higher-than-100-degree-days -- Phoenix/
Scottsdale, AZ -- several successful upscale
resort properties have extensive outdoor
waterpark features.
Overall, there are still plenty of places for
some version of the idea to go, but to do that,
capital must flow. To realize its potential, the
waterpark hotels industry still needs more
capacity in development skills, and people
that realize that they are in the entertainment
industry as well as hospitality.
Dan Martin is the Managing Principal of Market &
Feasibility Advisors, Chicago, Austin, and Los Angeles.
He and his colleagues have had the honor of working
with great minds at Kalahari Resorts, Great Wolf Lodge,
Schlitterbahn and others.
fun outside the parks
the orlando fun partners provide big entertainment
without big names
by Kimberly Rily
The IAAPA Attractions Expo heads to Orlando in just over a month. While most people associate the city with
the major theme parks that live there, a variety of other attractions also provide entertainment and value for
guests. InPark’s Mitch and Kim Rily take a tour of these lesser known Orlando attractions.
W
hen one talks about vacationing in
Orlando, Florida, a couple of big parks
almost automatically come into mind. Although
these giants are a huge draw to get visitors to
Orlando, there are plenty of other things to do
in Orlando, “The City Beautiful”. And while one
might think that the smaller entertainment
companies might fight against one another
to rake in business, it makes more sense to the
Orlando Fun Partners to collaborate in their
marketing and rally together, so they aren’t
overshadowed by their big brothers.
The businesses that make up Orlando Fun
Partners are: Fun Spot Action Park, Boggy Creek
Airboat Rides, Howl at the Moon, iFly Indoor
Skydiving, Orlando Balloon Rides, Titanic
the Experience, Revolution, the Off Road
Experience, Florida EcoSafaris, Pirate’s Dinner
Adventure, Treasure Tavern, Pirate’s Cove
Adventure Golf, Oerther Foods McDonald’s,
Ripley’s Believe It or Not (Orlando) and the
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. There
are educational venues, restaurants, highadventure experiences, animal parks, and
family-friendly game locations.
The owners of these companies came up with
the idea of Fun Partners in their after-hours
off time. On Fridays after work, the owners
would meet socially, where the idea was “born
on a bar napkin” says Fun Spot Action Park
owner, Mark Brisson. In 1999, they came up
with the idea of having “hospitality days” and
inviting those from the guest service industry
come visit them. All twelve attractions get
the chance to participate and they have four
parties each year in order to build goodwill
and word-of-mouth.
The Orlando Fun Partners mission is to “increase
the awareness and volume of business realized
by its member attractions. That mission is
served by creating events, promotions and
various marketing activities targeting the
guest service/hospitality front line segments
of the Central Florida market.” So in order to
create more revenue, these joint companies
are working to make themselves well known
to hospitality and guest service people all over
Central Florida. They also provide “massive
discounts” to those who have a membership
card.
Of course, in order for their marketing to be
successful, these locations also have to be
viable attractions. Each location must be
a success in its own right, with the group
attachment enhancing its attendance and
publicity. Brisson also quoted the aphorism,
“A rising tide lifts all boats.” And each partner
in the group gets a say in whether or not new
businesses get to join Orlando Fun Partners.
The businesses endorse each other, so they
have to know the other business is trustworthy
as well as fun.
Kim and daughter Samantha prepare to
skydive indoors. Photo courtesy of Mitch Rily.
15
These partners do enhance one another’s
appeal. They state that the other companies
are valuable, fun and reputable, and they
each stand up for one another. Almost like a
family, they help the other members thrive.
And when small businesses are up against
companies with worldwide appeal and billiondollar marketing budgets, they need all the
help they can get. In this time of economic
uncertainty, it’s heartening to hear of people
and businesses supporting each other instead
of fighting over every last dollar.
InPark Magazine reporters Mitch and Kimberly
Rily had a chance to visit with several of the
Orlando Fun Partners’ attractions and built
a whole trip around them. The Orlando Fun
Partners were eager to not only help InPark
plan a full-fledged vacation, but they were also
eager in promoting each other.
Since Nick Romeo at iFly was so helpful to us,
we visited iFly Indoor Skydiving first. Kimberly,
who had gone skydiving before out of an
actual plane, wanted to see how it compared
to the real thing. And while she might not have
let her 4-year-old daughter, Samantha, jump
out of a plane, the ladies were both willing and
eager to experience the feel of flying in airtunnel. The instructor, Chris, was very helpful
in giving a few instructions, and in less than
half an hour, an adult and a four-year-old were
taking turns flying around the air tunnel, rising
ten to twelve feet off the ground, their cheeks
and hair flapping in the breeze. And while the
two smiled and gave thumbs up to others
watching outside, real life sky-divers were
practicing their moves and tricks in the tunnel
as well.
After that, the family headed over to the
nearby Oerther Foods McDonald’s. Toted as
the “world’s biggest McDonald’s,” it is much
more than your usual fast food stop. While this
McDonald’s has the tried and true menu items,
they also have gourmet fare available inside.
And the 1980’s Mac Tonight, along with classic
McDonald’s characters grace the inside of the
two-story building. Upstairs, Birdie flies above
the kid’s play area and modern arcade games
such as Guitar Hero cover the floor. More than
your run-of-the-mill McDonald’s, it’s a great
place to stop at for more than a quick meal.
The next day, Kim and Mitch were off to Boggy
Creek Airboat Rides. This place is sort of an
anti-theme park. Instead of artificial themeing,
make-believe cartoon characters and boats
that only stay on tracks, everything here is real.
Instead of trying to look like the real thing,
this is the real thing. Kim and Mitch took a
boat out just for the family, sped around the
water, watching birds “run” over the water and
even saw a sleeping alligator. The tour guide
reassured the children that the alligators don’t
even eat in the winter months. They just try
to find somewhere to stay warm and expend
as little energy as possible. After returning to
the boathouse, a gentleman brought a baby
alligator over for the family to pet and take a
picture with.
into the sky above Orlando at 6:00 a.m., carried
only by the wind. The balloon provided views
of Florida landmarks, miles and miles away.
And when they landed smaller passengers
picked wild oranges while the adults pitched
in deflating the balloon. The kids even got
to help by walking on top of the silk. All the
passengers, who started out as strangers and
ended up as friends, ate breakfast together
at the Ramada that they had departed from
earlier. Everyone left tired, satiated and happy.
Later that afternoon, after lunch and a nap, the
group headed over to Ripley’s Believe It or Not
to hear tales and see models of strange things
from around the globe. While some of the
stories were the kind to turn one’s stomach,
others were cute, interesting, amazing, and
ended with a fun walk through a spinning
tube.
Along with a great place to stay, these Orlando
Fun Partner member companies made for
a great vacation. While those bigger parks
are fun, they also have their drawbacks that
can hit the pocketbook hard. There’s no
reason why a family (or a group of friends)
can’t go on vacation without spending big
bucks. The smaller attractions, often unduly
overshadowed by their big brothers, are just
as fun, just as memorable, and can create a
vacation that really sticks out as being different
from the ordinary.
Later that day, the family went off to Fun
Spot Orlando, where they spent an awesome
afternoon with the park practically to
themselves (winter is a great off-peak time
to visit vacation spots everywhere). The
wristbands let them ride everything, and
there was little the kids couldn’t go on. They
spent hours on swings, bouncers, carousels,
fast-slides, bumper boats and the giant Ferris
wheel that reads “Fun Spot”. The four go-kart
racetracks were fun for both the grown-ups
and the kids. Extra padding made the cars safe
for the children, and they sped around again
and again! Fun Sport Orlando is like a yearround carnival. It was great fun.
Later that night, Kimberly and Mitch went out
to Treasure Tavern for a grown-up’s night out.
With good drinks, a fun show with horrible
puns and innuendo, a steak dinner with an
upgrade to Filet Mignon, it was a great way
to spend time away from the kids (who were
left with a babysitter). Treasure Tavern, a strictly
adult-themed show, is located in the same
building as Pirate’s Dinner Adventure, which is
also a member of Orlando Fun Parks.
It was an early wake-up call the next morning for
a trip to Orlando Balloon Rides before sunrise.
A highlight of the weekend, 13 people headed
Fun Spot Orlando provides thrilling and family rides to entertain the whole family. Photo
courtesy of Mitch Rily.
16
waterpark numbers excerpt
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See Beyond...
Innovative themed environments don’t come from a box.
,
Design & Fabrication Studios
Entertainment & Events
For more information, Contact Steve Guy - [email protected]
770-480-7837 www.goedg.com